SCOTTSBORO, Ala. (March 23, 2009) Jay Fagan of Mableton, Ga., won the Walmart Bass Fishing League® Bama Division tournament on Lake Guntersville…
SCOTTSBORO, Ala. (March 23, 2009) Jay Fagan of Mableton, Ga., won the Walmart Bass Fishing League® Bama Division tournament on Lake Guntersville Saturday with a five-bass catch weighing 26 pounds, 1 ounce. The victory earned Fagan $4,498 and placed him one step closer to qualifying for the Lake Seminole Regional Championship in Bainbridge, Ga., Oct. 22-24, where he could ultimately win a new Ranger boat and a Chevy truck.
This is my first year to go as a boater, said Fagan. I knew I had a good check, not sure if I had a win.
Fagan started off fishing deep, working his way up to more shallow water. He fished upriver for pre-spawn bass throwing an XCalibur Xr50 Royal Shad. Fagan caught all of his fish in one spot, ending his day with catching an 8 ¼ -pounder.
Rounding out the top five boaters are Tim Staley of Dowelltown, Tenn. (five bass, 25-14, $2,249); Sam Bass of Section, Ala. (five bass, 25-10, $1,498); Andrew Beam of Rome, Ga. (five bass, 25-7, $1,050) and Edward Gettys of Scottsboro, Ala. (five bass, 24-8, $900).
Jay Fagan took home the Boater Division Big Bass award, earning $645 for an 8-pound, 4-ounce bass he caught.
Matt Wilson of Auburn, Ala., earned $2,249 as the co-angler winner Saturday thanks to five bass weighing 25 pounds, 3 ounces.
Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Jeff Benefield of Union Grove, Ala. (five bass, 22-6, $1,125); Jackie Quillen of Florence, Ala. (five bass, 21-2, $752); Dan Clark of Cleveland, Tenn. (five bass, 20-12, $525); and Kevin Morris of Savannah, Tenn. (five bass, 18-12, $450).
Jimmy Rowell of Grove Oak, Ala. earned $322 as the co-angler Big Bass winner after catching an 8-pound, 8-ounce bass.
The next Bama Division event will be held on Pickwick Lake in Florence, Ala., April 25.
The top 40 boaters and 40 co-anglers in each of the BFLs 28 divisions at the end of the season advance to a no-entry-fee Regional Championship where boaters fish for a new Ranger boat and a Chevy truck and co-anglers fish for a new Ranger boat. Seven regional championships will each send six boaters and six co-anglers to the no-entry-fee Walmart BFL All-American presented by Chevy, which features a $1 million purse and a top award of $140,000 in the Boater Division and $70,000 in the Co-angler Division. Anglers who compete in all five regular-season events within a division but do not advance to a Regional Championship are eligible to compete in the Chevy Wild Card, which will also send six boaters and six co-anglers to the All-American for a total of 48 boaters and 48 co-anglers advancing through BFL competition.
The winning boater and winning co-angler at the All-American will advance to the no-entry-fee $2.5 million Forrest Wood Cup in Atlanta in 2010. This event, featuring a top award of $1 million, is the most lucrative tournament in all of competitive bass fishing. In all, the BFL offers weekend anglers the opportunity to qualify for three no-entry-fee championships with total cash awards exceeding $3.5 million. Plus, the top 40 boaters and 40 co-anglers from each BFL division may move up to the Stren Series for 2010 while All-American champions have the option to advance directly to the Walmart FLW Tour®.
In BFL competition, boaters supply the boat and compete from the front deck against other boaters. Co-anglers compete from the back deck against other co-anglers.
As the nations leading provider of affordable, close-to-home weekend tournaments, the BFL is widely credited with opening competitive bass fishing to the masses. It also serves as a steppingstone for anglers who wish to advance to the Stren Series and ultimately the FLW Tour bass fishings most lucrative tournament circuit.
Total awards are based on a full field of 200 boats in every tournament.
FLW Outdoors, named after Forrest L. Wood, the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, is the largest fishing tournament organization in the world. FLW Outdoors also is taking fishing mainstream with FLW Fantasy Fishing, offering the largest awards possible in the history of fantasy sports, $10 million in cash and prizes. Sign up for Players Advantage for only $10 to get your edge and win.
For more information about FLW Outdoors and its tournaments, visit FLWOutdoors.com or call (270) 252-1000. For more information about FLW Fantasy Fishing and Players Advantage, visit FantasyFishing.com.
